4 Most Misunderstood Ayahs of the Quran

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Islam, like many religions, is in part based on the interpretation of a holy text. For Muslims, that holy text is the Quran. This 1,400 year old text is divided into chapters called suras, which are further divided into verses called ayahs. These suras and ayahs form the basis for the Islamic faith.

According to Muslim beliefs, the Quran is the complete and unaltered word of Allah. This text was transmitted to Muhammad through the angel Gabriel over a period of almost 23 years. The Quran was completed the year that Muhammad died in 609 A.D. Muslims believe that, because the Quran is unaltered, it is perfect and has not been modified by fallible human hands. That said, there are ayahs in the Quran that require some interpretation, and there is considerable debate surrounding what these verses mean, especially in the modern world.

The sad reality is that there is a group of Muslims who use the ayahs of the Quran to justify their evil actions. These truly monstrous interpretations are then spread across the world. The ayahs themselves are then seen by outsiders to be malicious when it is the cruel and malevolent humans who should be blamed.

As with any ancient text, the ayahs and suras should be understood within the context in which they were created. Nearly half of the Quran deals with a time when Muslims were either being persecuted by or at war with their neighbors. Focusing on the words of the ayah and ignoring the context it was created in is a surefire way to misinterpret the ayah. Here are four ayahs that are often misunderstood or taken out of context.

Quran 3:28

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This ayah is often quoted as “let not the believers be friends with nonbelievers.” This sounds as if Muslims are being told they cannot befriend any of their non-Muslim neighbors. The entire quote, however, does not quite hold to this interpretation. Quran 3:28 reads “Let not the believers take the disbelievers as Auliya instead of the believers, and whoever does that will never be helped by God in any way, except if you indeed fear a danger from them. And God warns you against Himself and to God is the final return.” Auliya is an Arabic word meaning supporter, protector, helper or friend.

This ayah is not talking about everyday friendships. It is talking about alliances in war. At the time when this ayah was written, Muslims were at war with their pagan neighbors. The Arab pagans were more numerous, wealthy and powerful than the then-small Muslim community. It would have been tempting to side with a pagan over a Muslim. This ayah is telling Muslims to, essentially, hold fast and protect each other with one exception: a Muslim “fears a danger” if they refuse an overture of friendship.

Quran 3:118

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This ayah is often misunderstood to mean that non-Muslims are never safe from Muslims. This is because part of the ayah is taken out of context. The ayah is often misquoted as “never think [non-Muslims] to be in safety from the punishment,” but this is only a fraction of the full ayah. Quran 3:118 in full reads “Do not think that those who exult in their misdeeds and love to be praised for what indeed they have not done, do not think that they are safe from punishment. A painful punishment awaits them.” This ayah, when taken in context, reads very similarly to any number of religious texts that speak to forbidden behaviors. In this case, the ayah is talking about false piety. It is saying that Muslims who seek praise for a piety they do not possess will answer to the judgment of Allah, and they will not enjoy the outcome.

Quran 4:91

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This is perhaps one of the most unnerving ayahs when it is misinterpreted, and it is an ayah that has been used to justify horrific evil. Quran 4:91 is another ayah that deals with the wars between Muslims and non-Muslims in the 6th and 7th centuries. During this time period, Muslims and non-Muslims both faced all the unpleasant, underhanded techniques that come with such a vicious war. Spies and betrayal were to be expected.

Quran 4:91 is most infamous for the line “seize them and kill them wherever you overtake them.” When put in context, however, this line is meant to instruct Muslims how to deal with spies and traitors. During the late 6th and early 7th centuries, Muslims truly believed that if they did not win the wars against their pagan neighbors, Islam would be wiped out and all its adherents murdered. Given the time period, this is not an unrealistic belief. As such, instructions were given for how to deal with those who would convince the Muslims to grant them safety only to betray the Muslims later. The entirety of Quran 4:91 reads, “You will find others who wish to be safe from you, and from their own people, yet whenever they find an opportunity of inflicting harm, they plunge into it. So if they neither withdraw, nor offer you peace, nor restrain themselves from fighting you, seize and kill them wherever you encounter them. Over such people We have given you clear authority.”

Quran 4:101

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Quran 4:101 is not an ayah that is as ominous as some other ayahs when taken out of context, but it can be confusing for both Muslims and non-Muslims alike. One of the five pillars of Islam is salat or ritual prayer. These prayers are performed five times a day with a specific sequence of movements. Despite their centrality to the faith, however, Quran 4:101 appears to say that “there is no blame upon you for shortening the prayer.” In that case, why is salat so emphasized?

This ayah appears to justify shortening salat because it is taken out of context. Quran 4:101-103 discusses how Muslims should ritually pray when they are near enemies who might take advantage of the Muslim’s distraction and attack the praying Muslims. In such situations, Quran 4:101 says, “And when you travel throughout the land, there is no blame upon you for shortening the prayer, if you feel those that disbelieve may disrupt [or attack] you. Indeed, the disbelievers are ever to you a clear enemy.”